"33 Drinks, Sedative": Lawsuit Blames Royal Caribbean Cruise For Man's Death

A California man's death aboard a Royal Caribbean cruise last year has been officially ruled a homicide after the family, in a lawsuit, claimed that he was over-served alcohol by the staff members.

According to a lawsuit filed by his fiancee, Connie Aguilar, crew members served 35-year-old Michael Virgil at least 33 alcoholic drinks, leaving him so intoxicated that he became disoriented and got lost while trying to find his cabin, documents obtained by TMZ read.

"Virgil died of significant hypoxia and impaired ventilation, respiratory failure, cardiovascular instability, and ultimately cardiopulmonary arrest, leading to his death, which has been ruled a homicide," the lawsuit read.

Virgil was repeatedly served alcohol by crew members even after he showed "obvious visual signs of intoxication," court documents allege.

In 2024, Virgil's family first alleged that ship security injected him with a powerful sedative that caused his death. Now, a year later, the family has repeated the same allegation in a new lawsuit. They say that after further investigation, officials have changed Virgil's official cause of death to homicide, according to The NY Post.

The incident unfolded when the couple were travelling from Los Angeles to Ensenada, Mexico, with their 7-year-old son, who has autism. Upon reaching there, they found their room wasn't ready, and they were told to wait in a bar until then, the lawsuit alleges.

Connie claims that after waiting for a long time, their son became restless and upset. To calm him down, Connie took their son to check whether the cabin was ready, leaving Michael alone at the bar.

According to the lawsuit, while Connie was away, the bar staff served Michael dozens of alcoholic drinks. Later, still extremely drunk, he tried to go find their cabin by himself. But because he was so intoxicated, he couldn't find the room, which made him frustrated and agitated, and he tried to break down a door.

When security finally detained him, Connie says the crew used excessive force. According to the lawsuit, security and medical staff sprayed him with multiple cans of pepper spray and then injected him with a strong sedative called Haloperidol that caused his death.

"Royal Caribbean crew members, including security personnel, then tackled the decedent to the ground, stood on the decedent's body with their full weight, and compressed the decedent's body, causing the decedent to stop moving," the lawsuit read, as reported by USA Today.

Kevin Haynes, a partner at the law firm Kherkher Garcia, LLP, which filed the suit, said, "Michael's family has suffered unimaginable heartache and torment caused by Royal Caribbean, a mega cruise line that prioritises profit over passenger safety."

Haynes also stated that crew members, including security and medical staff, are supposed to receive thorough training to handle situations on board. However, he argued that Royal Caribbean has been completely negligent in its hiring, training, and supervision of its large team of maritime employees.

Royal Caribbean released a statement saying they were saddened by Michael's death but would refrain from commenting further due to the ongoing litigation.